A popular pizza and burger restaurant which has sites across Suffolk and Essex is preparing to open its doors at the former Frankie & Benny's at Cardinal Park.
Dough & Co and Burger Amour, fronted by Bury St Edmunds entrepreneur and ex-chef Chris Sharman, is opening the new site in Ipswich on Tuesday.
Mr Sharman started the Dough & Co business in a horse box and opened his first restaurant in Sudbury in 2018, with many more now under his belt.
He had always hoped of adding Ipswich to the list, and now he is just days away from welcoming his first customers.
Mr Sharman said he had his eyes on Ipswich due to the high volume of students and proximity to the A12.
"Ipswich is a similar town to Colchester, and it just makes sense as many people know about us," he said.
"We wanted sites close to the A12 and the one at Cardinal Park is perfect.
"We hope to get lots of footfall as it is close to the cinema."
Mr Sharman has sites in Colchester, Sudbury, and Bury St Edmunds, among many others, and is about to launch new restaurants in Thetford and Huntingdon.
He said independent brands have become "more desirable than chains" in recent years.
"We have brought the kitchen out at the new Ipswich restaurant, so customers can see our chefs cook," he explained.
"We also believe in training and developing our people, and have a really strong team. A large portion of our staff are under 30 and they work really hard and put the effort in.
"For us, the business is all about the food. We deliver pizza and pasta that is fresh and almost inconsistent, as it's made by hand.
"We also make our pizzas much healthier, with one only having around 550 calories in. We tackle a lot of different things."
Mr Sharman has recently launched an app for customers, due to the strong delivery side of the business.
This means ordering is now as easy as possible, with customers able to track their deliveries by the minute — with orders available within a seven-mile radius.
The Ipswich restaurant will only serve Dough & Co diners inside — but will operate a 'ghost kitchen' for Burger Amour customers for collection and delivery.
It seats 120 people and has a wooden-themed décor throughout.
For more details and to order see the Dough & Co/Burger Amour website.
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